Burmi finding his footing with the Jets

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This article was published 09/11/2015 (3620 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The examination of Alex Burmistrov’s game, now he has returned to the Winnipeg Jets, has been intense.

It would be no other way in this city, in this league.

His lagging stats line is there for all to see — one month into the season he has played 15 games, averaging 16 minutes 35 seconds per game, with two goals, one game-winner, four points, 21 shots on goal, six minor penalties and a minus-two rating.

Same for his possession numbers — a 45.7 per cent Corsi for and a 47.5 per cent Fenwick for.

The sum of it probably points to a player still trying to re-establish his footing after two years away from the NHL.

What no stats line is going to give you is the context of the 24-year-old forward’s story, in particular that it’s not only about learning his new fit with the Jets and finding chemistry with new linemates Adam Lowry and Drew Stafford.

“They’ve asked me to play hard, to play my best game,” Burmistrov said. “Everybody knows I can be a defensive player and an offensive player. I try to be both but I think I have to improve more on my offensive play.”

In agreeing to an interview about topics other than position, pucks and sticks, the native of Kazan, Russia, the eighth-overall pick of the 2010 draft offered some insight into what he’s been trying to process since signing a two-year deal with the Jets July 1, ending his two-year hiatus to the KHL.

“The toughest thing now has been going overseas,” Burmistrov said. “Your family is not here, your friends are not here. That’s tough when you’re coming home and nobody’s there in the house.

“Sometimes you need to sit and talk to somebody, not just on the phone.”

Some of those personal things have been a challenge, even though he has done them once before when he moved to Barrie, Ont., at age 17 to play for the OHL’s Barrie Colts.

“Basically I tried to be a man in North America when I came here at 17, to grow up,” he said. “Seventeen to 21, that’s a big four years. You go from young kid to boy, and especially when I came to Atlanta, I was 18 years old and being with guys who were almost 30 years old.

“That was a big (factor) for me. I learned a lot from them and I’m still learning a lot from the older players.”

In 2013, Burmistrov said he reached a frustrating point when his entry-level contract was up. He didn’t want to rehash his displeasure with former coach Claude Noel or having to play half a season in the AHL during the lockout.

“I wasn’t happy, that’s for sure,” he said. “Because I knew at that time when I left, I knew that I would come back. Since I was a kid, I want to play here, in this league.

“Another hard thing about coming back was that I was hoping and trying so hard that last year of my contract in the KHL to win that Gagarin Cup, and we lost in the final. That was the hardest, to leave the city (Kazan) without the win. We had a chance to win that final and it was the toughest thing.

“And other things? Well, all my family, all my friends, my girlfriend, they were supporting me when I came here. That’s the main thing, that nobody blamed me when I left. I told them, everybody, and everybody supported me, told me ‘Good luck,’ and that was nice for me.”

Big goal

While Burmistrov tries to re-settle himself personally and professionally, some good signs are emerging. One is his girlfriend will be here before too long.

“That will be a good thing for me,” he said.

Another is he played a big role in helping the Jets claim a win last week in Toronto, scoring a game-winning goal late in the third period he said was an unbelievable relief for him.

Partially because he has not yet accumulated much in the way of offensive numbers. And partially because in that game, he was in the penalty box in the first period when Toronto scored, and had another minor penalty late in the third, causing him great angst.

What kind of things did he think about for those two minutes?

“A lot you can’t say because a lot was going on and I was just trying to help the guys killing that penalty,” he said. “I’m a part of this penalty-killing team and it’s big for me. When I was in the box, we’re missing one guy and I’m feeling sorry for the guys and I’m hoping they’re going to kill it.”

He said he did not feel better as the time ticked off.

“It’s two minutes. Lots can happen in two seconds,” he said.

He and Jets coach Paul Maurice had what appeared to be a smiling exchange after Burmistrov left the box and scored the game-winner.

“Oh, you know, he said it’s good to be a bad guy in the box and come back to get the game-winning goal, that it must be a good feeling. But that’s past now. I don’t want to look back. I want to improve.”

There seemed to be considerable empathy for the pressures Burmistrov has been feeling in his return to the team.

Teammate Blake Wheeler, who set him up for the key shot in Toronto, said after the game he understands all the forces on and off the ice Burmistrov has been dealing with.

Maurice was also talking up Burmistrov’s game within minutes of the win in Toronto.

“He’s wanted to produce,” the coach said. “We’ve asked him to be in a different role and he’s excelled at it. I know the plus-minus and the stats aren’t good but he’s played head-to-head against (L.A.’s Anze) Kopitar and head-to-head against (Jonathan) Toews in our win against Chicago, so it hasn’t allowed him to cash in or take some of the chances.

“So big goal for him; hopefully that’ll boost his confidence. Those guys need a little payback when you ask them to do a tough job.”

The job itself has been made a little tougher because the Jets of today are not quite the same as the Jets Burmistrov knew before.

“It’s more of a skilled game in Russia, not a lot of hitting like this,” he said. “Here, everybody is going and trying to hit. That’s tougher. I knew it was going to be like that here, but it’s not the same that I remember because we (the Jets) have changed conferences.

“It’s way different than the Eastern Conference.”

Inside the dressing room, Burmistrov also notices major change.

“I think Paul has changed a lot of things here,” he said. “When you can come in the dressing room, you can see how many new guys are here. They are different people. And when the coach is trusting you and helping you as a player, you learn a lot and you improve.”

tim.campbell@freepress.mb.ca